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Description:
Title:
Coral mass spawning predicted by rapid seasonal rise in ocean temperature
Author(s):
Keith, Sally A.
Maynard, Jeffrey A.
Edwards, Alasdair J.
Guest, James R.
Bauman, Andrew G.
van Hooidonk, Ruben
Heron, Scott F.
Berumen, Michael L.
Bouwmeester, Jessica
Piromvaragorn, Srisakul
Rahbek, Carsten
Baird, Andrew H.
Dates of Publication:
2016
Abstract:
Coral spawning times have been linked to multiple environmental factors; however, to what extent these factors act as generalized cues across multiple species and large spatial scales is unknown. We used a unique dataset of coral spawning from 34 reefs in the Indian and Pacific Oceans to test if month of spawning and peak spawning month in assemblages of Acropora spp. can be predicted by sea surface temperature (SST), photosynthetically available radiation, wind speed, current speed, rainfall or sunset time. Contrary to the classic view that high mean SST initiates coral spawning, we found rapid increases in SST to be the best predictor in both cases (month of spawning: R(2) = 0.73, peak: R(2) = 0.62). Our findings suggest that a rapid increase in SST provides the dominant proximate cue for coral mass spawning over large geographical scales. We hypothesize that coral spawning is ultimately timed to ensure optimal fertilization success.
Keywords:
Coral reefs and islands
Ocean temperature
Local Corporate Name:
OAR (Oceanic and Atmospheric Research)
AOML (Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory)
CIMAS (Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies)
NESDIS (National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service)
CoRIS (Coral Reef Information System)
Type of Resource:
Journal Article
Note:
Coral spawning times have been linked to multiple environmental factors; however, to what extent these factors act as generalized cues across multiple species and large spatial scales is unknown. We used a unique dataset of coral spawning from 34 reefs in the Indian and Pacific Oceans to test if month of spawning and peak spawning month in assemblages of Acropora spp. can be predicted by sea surface temperature (SST), photosynthetically available radiation, wind speed, current speed, rainfall or sunset time. Contrary to the classic view that high mean SST initiates coral spawning, we found rapid increases in SST to be the best predictor in both cases (month of spawning: R(2) = 0.73, peak: R(2) = 0.62). Our findings suggest that a rapid increase in SST provides the dominant proximate cue for coral mass spawning over large geographical scales. We hypothesize that coral spawning is ultimately timed to ensure optimal fertilization success.
URL:
DOI:
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